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Continued from page 2

Pall’s problems don’t end there, as their testing methods might not be meeting all EPA guidelines, and yet according to Pall’s press releases they are a purification leader and admired by Newsweek magazine.

Pall Corporation (NYSE:PLL) is a filtration, separation and purification leader

Pall has been named a “top green company” by Newsweek magazine

According to CARD, from August to November 2012, 366 out of 427 samples were not tested within the 14 day requirement set by the EPA – 86% of the samples did not meet the 14 day limit. Furthermore, earlier in the year, 128 samples also exceeded the 14 day holding time. So the leader in water purification wasn’t meeting all the EPA limits.

The EPA Method document for 1624 Revision B dictates the following: “9.4 All samples shall be analyzed within 14 days of collection.”. For most volatile organic compound analysis a 14 day holding time is common. Below is from the State of Michigan laboratory website for method 8260, which is another approved method for analysis of 1,4-dioxane

Access to the database that holds the data has also been an issue. According to CARD member Roger Rayle,

For years, Pall was providing excerpts from its sampling database to the DEQ. But in the 2010-2011 timeframe, Pall moved their internal database to a new one. When CARD finally got a snapshot of the new database via the DEQ and compared it to the old one, there were hundreds of inconsistencies/errors in the new database. When the DEQ reported these to Pall in October 2011, instead of explaining the problems, Pall cut off the DEQ’s (hence the public’s) access to the database that holds information about a public health hazard.

According to the DEQ, that database is/was at Wayne State University (or hosted by someone who works there). It should be noted that Farsad Fotouhi is the Corporate VP of Sustainability, Safety and Environmental Engineering at Pall Corporation. It should also be noted that there is a Farshad Fotouhi (not the same person), who serves as the Dean at the College of Engineering at Wayne State. They are brothers, and so Pall is linked to Wayne State personally. Perhaps, then it's no surprise that Wayne State University (one brother) is hosting Pall (the other brother) in an event on environmental sustainability. According to Wayne State:

The Office of the Vice President of Research is pleased to host the Sustainability@Wayne Seminar on Tuesday, January 15, 2013 at 2:30 p.m. at the Welcome Center Auditorium. The presenter for this seminar will be Dr. Farsad Fotouhi, Corporate VP, Sustainability, Safety and Environmental Engineering at Pall Corporation in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Dr. Fotouhi is responsible for global sustainability, and Safety and Environmental Engineering Programs at Pall.

I tried a FOIA request for information relating to the database and that request was denied. So I filed an appeal with the President of Wayne State University. At first I was told that I would get a quick response, and then I was told by their lawyer that they would give me a response in 10 days. Although the lawyer told me that I’d get a response, I did not receive it, and when I reminded Wayne State of the issue – they offered no response. Wayne State ignored my request in this environmental issue of public safety, and they ignored my FOIA appeal. And that's especially troubling as they are hosting an event on the environment. It should be noted that according to CARD, the Engineering Dean at Wayne State is the brother of the person in charge of Sustainability, Safety and Environmental Engineering at Pall. Take a look at this document at CARD:

First, DEQ's Sybil Kolon revealed that Pall has been working for about a year on moving their 1,4-dioxane sampling database from their own computers to one hosted at Wayne State University (WSU). That helps explain why there hasn't been a database update from Pall/Gelman via the DEQ to the public since December 2010.

Why Wayne State? WSU researcher Larry Lemke, who, like the other non-DEQ people at the meeting, was surprised by the news, then revealed that it might just be a coincidence, but Pall's Corporate Vice President of Sustainability, Safety & Environmental Engineering in charge of the cleanup, Farsad Fotouhi, has a brother, Farshad Fotouhi, who was chair of the Department of Computer Science at Wayne State University prior to having been appointed dean of the University's College of Engineering in December 2010. The brother connection revelation surprised Sybil and the other people present.

On January 8th I asked Pall for a comment. No answer was given. But, on January 10th, Farsad Fotouhi contacted a member of CARD and he wanted to know about their concerns regarding the database. The timing of Fotouhi's email is ironic as he will be speaking at Wayne State University on environmental safety in a few days, and he responded to CARD after my inquiry to Pall for a comment. Normally Fotouhi doesn't communicate to CARD and this is reflected in Fotouhi's comment to CARD,

I know we have not communicated for a while

Along with Pall's communication issues, there is big problem with Fotouhi's request -- as per this documentation, CARD has already expressed their concerns about the database issues. Fotouhi is listed in that documentation, so Pall was already informed about the database issues. So for Pall to ask,

Would you please let me know what data you are missing from your files.

... is an insult to the questions that have already been asked. And listed in that documenation, it bluntly states that Pall (the 'leader' in water filtration) would cut off access to the dioxane database (a database that directly deals with water filtration) from the State of Michigan and the public. As stated in the documentation:

Consequently, as set forth in greater detail below, PLS is terminating the State's direct access to the database.